Board Member

Catholic Volunteer Network

W. Brian Walsh has 20 years of notable experience in fundraising and marketing.Brian is a 1990 graduate of the Catholic University of America; he was president of his graduating senior class.He and his wife have four young children and are active members of Blessed Sacrament Catholic Community in Alexandria, VA.
Brian is a Board Member of the Catholic Volunteer Network (www.cvn.org) serving on the Executive Committee, as well as chairs the Development Committee.

Brian is president and principal of Warfield & Walsh, Inc.Warfield & Walsh is recognized as one of the top direct marketing fundraising agencies in the country.
In addition to being the Chief Operating Officer for the agency, Brian overseas strategic planning, creative and analysis for Warfield & Walsh clients.
Brian's firm has helped raise over 800 million dollars for their clients.
He has presented at multiple conferences on development and philanthropy.

Brian is also the founder and president of Faith Direct, Inc.Faith Direct has evolved into the leading firm providing complete e-Giving services to Churches throughout the United States.
More information on Faith Direct can be found at www.faithdirect.net.

So says W. Brian Walsh, parishioner of Blessed Sacrament Parish in Alexandria and president of Faith Direct, an Alexandria-based company that provides a full-service automated payment program specifically designed for monetary collections in Catholic churches.
Through Faith Direct, parishioners can automatically deduct their offertory contributions from their checking or savings accounts (or charge them to a credit card) in one lump sum at the beginning of each month, similar to automated mortgage, car or insurance payments.
Five parishes in the Arlington Diocese currently use Faith Direct - some others have their own methods of electronic giving - and Walsh hopes only to expand that number.
As of press time, approximately 25 more diocesan parishes had registered for one of two Faith Direct information luncheons held Tuesday and Wednesday at St. Timothy Church in Chantilly and Blessed Sacrament, respectively - the first two parishes in the diocese to implement the program.
Both churches have used Faith Direct for a year and a half, with St. Theresa Parish in Ashburn joining in December, St. Patrick Parish in Fredericksburg in March and St. James Parish in Falls Church in April.

Walsh, co-founder of Warfield and Walsh, a direct mail fund-raising company, said that for years he and his wife struggled to get themselves and their small children to Mass on time, and, as a result, often forgot to bring their offertory envelope.
After finding no electronic giving remedy that specifically helped Catholic churches, Faith Direct was born.
"I frankly didn't need to start another company," Walsh said.
"I want to work in the Catholic Church because I want to make a difference.
I'd rather be known in 10 years as Faith Direct being the company that changed the way people gave.
More than anything else, that to me would be an accomplishment."
Seventeen parishes in the neighboring Archdiocese of Washington use Faith Direct - the largest number in any diocese in the country - and dioceses in Michigan, Missouri, New Jersey, New York, Pennsylvania and Rhode Island also participate.

"While we certainly did not invent electronic giving for parishes, we're considered one of the leaders in the country because our approach is much different - it's full service," Walsh said.
"It's up to Faith Direct to run the entire process."
That means Faith Direct accesses accounts and handles marketing, mailings, customer service and databases - all the details it takes to bring parish collections into an electronically driven society.

"It's not just for offertory, it's for any second collection that's mandated by the diocese, plus any unique gifts," Walsh said.

...

Only 30 percent of the parish community consistently supports their parish, Walsh said.

"We have, in this diocese, been able to demonstrate that we are converting (to electronic giving) 25 percent of those donors in year one, which is significant," he said, adding that the 26 percent conversion at St. Patrick is a primary example.
"Basically a quarter of the donating population is gravitating toward electronic giving.
We're seeing, on average, an additional 10 gifts a year in the offertory.